943 lines
41 KiB
Plaintext
943 lines
41 KiB
Plaintext
F I D O N E W S -- Volume 15, Number 36 7 September 1998
|
|
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
|
|
| The newsletter of the | ISSN 1198-4589 Published by: |
|
|
| FidoNet community | "FidoNews" |
|
|
| _ | +27-41-515-913 [5:5/23] |
|
|
| / \ | |
|
|
| /|oo \ | |
|
|
| (_| /_) | |
|
|
| _`@/_ \ _ | |
|
|
| | | \ \\ | Editor: |
|
|
| | (*) | \ )) | Henk Wolsink 5:7104/2 |
|
|
| |__U__| / \// | |
|
|
| _//|| _\ / | |
|
|
| (_/(_|(____/ | |
|
|
| (jm) | Newspapers should have no friends. |
|
|
| | -- JOSEPH PULITZER |
|
|
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
|
|
| Submission address: FidoNews Editor 5:5/23 |
|
|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
| MORE addresses: |
|
|
| |
|
|
| submissions=> editor@fidonews.org |
|
|
| |
|
|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
| For information, copyrights, article submissions, |
|
|
| obtaining copies of FidoNews or the internet gateway FAQ |
|
|
| please refer to the end of this file. |
|
|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
|
|
|
|
Table of Contents
|
|
1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1
|
|
2. GUEST EDITORIAL .......................................... 2
|
|
Why Fido is at risk? - by Adriano Garcia ................. 2
|
|
The Shrinking Nodelist - an optimist's view .............. 3
|
|
3. ARTICLES ................................................. 5
|
|
North American Backbone Echo Changes ..................... 5
|
|
4. COLUMNS .................................................. 6
|
|
Last chance for your Scientology refunds? ................ 8
|
|
5. NET HUMOR ................................................ 10
|
|
Dark Side of the Farce - Fido stars at war ............... 10
|
|
6. NOTICES .................................................. 12
|
|
7. FIDONET BY INTERNET ...................................... 14
|
|
8. FIDONEWS INFORMATION ..................................... 17
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 1 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
EDITORIAL
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
Greetings,
|
|
|
|
Last weeks editorial about the ECHOLIST, did bring in a few netmails
|
|
and e-mails, for which I thank you.
|
|
|
|
All made some form or another comment, in that those echo's which
|
|
do not form part of FidoNet, are gated between the 'othernet' and
|
|
FidoNet, hence being listed. Should the listing then also not
|
|
display the gateway address, so that those who would like to obtain
|
|
it, can make contact?
|
|
|
|
Lekker lees.
|
|
(Happy reading).
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
GUEST EDITORIAL
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
|
|
Why Fido is at risk?
|
|
by Adriano Garcia (former 4:801/53) adriano@visaonet.com
|
|
|
|
When the Internet started to be as widespread as it is today,
|
|
many people asked: "What is the future of FidoNet?". This question
|
|
has no simple answer, but many factors may prove that Fido was
|
|
doomed before the expansion of the commercial Internet.
|
|
|
|
Let's start with a small personal biography: I was a sysop in
|
|
Sao Paulo, Brazil back in 1993, when Fido was growing exponentially
|
|
there and many things that I will expose here are commonplace for
|
|
many of our readers.
|
|
|
|
First, and foremost, the main factor that scares people away from
|
|
helping the grow of Fidonet are the power trips. And they are present
|
|
in different flavors to please everyone. One example: for a long time,
|
|
before I joined Fido, local sysops were barred from entering Fido just
|
|
because it was a `qualified network' that should be run only by the
|
|
'best sysops'. Not for everyone. And the criteria used to determine
|
|
who were the `best' were subjective, being the level of friendship
|
|
with any *C a decisive factor.
|
|
|
|
It's also a reality that Policy4 isn't what we could call a
|
|
"democratic rule", but the same law can be interpreted differently
|
|
by two different persons. That's why we have courts. But, when
|
|
the person that enforces it is the same one that decides what
|
|
is right, then we have a problem. Or a dictatorship, if you prefer.
|
|
|
|
The last moment of growth of Fidonet Brazil was stopped by the first
|
|
"ideological cleansing" of the history of cyberspace in South
|
|
America. Many nodes were excommunicated just because they thought
|
|
differently from the newly appointed RC of 1994. The curious about
|
|
it is that the ones excommunicated had the same ideas of democracy
|
|
and development of Fido that the RC had before being nominated...
|
|
|
|
Now things seems to be getting back to normality, with another RC in
|
|
place. But who will tell this to the many who closed down their
|
|
systems just because it became one more problem instead of a pleasure?
|
|
|
|
And what about the sysops who wish to return as mail-only nodes or
|
|
point systems and cannot because nodes are charging big money for
|
|
mail or because *Cs do not assign mail-only nodes anymore, even
|
|
when there isn't a local BBS in the area?
|
|
|
|
Now we have the Internet. And people say that Fidonet is a "competing
|
|
network", with the Internet. An it's not. Fido is supposed to be an
|
|
amateur network where people communicate and participate as a
|
|
hobby, when the Internet is now a commercially oriented network that
|
|
has a completely different technology and environment. And there are
|
|
limitations in Usenet (the "Internet echomail") that are not present
|
|
in Fido.
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 3 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
They can really coexist. But only if the *C structure realises that
|
|
they aren't the "owners" of the network but only the ones that
|
|
*coordinate* the efforts of many into the development of a NEW
|
|
Fidonet. It's obvious that the technology is already in place,
|
|
with packets flowing through the Internet reducing the once
|
|
expensive international mail exchanges. This should be, by itself,
|
|
one good reason for Fido to expand, not to collapse.
|
|
|
|
We can get Fido into the 21st century. But only if we stop pretending
|
|
that we are dead and act. Putting people into the net, not keeping
|
|
them out.
|
|
|
|
(This may be my first and last submission to Fidonews, as the only
|
|
one telnettable BBS that I know that provides free access to Fido
|
|
is closing down and I have no other way to access the network
|
|
anymore. Sad news...)
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
|
An Optimistic View of the Shrinking Nodelist
|
|
Douglas Myers 1:270/720 doug@mdtnbbs.com
|
|
|
|
One of the most persistant topics of echotalk is the shrinking Fido
|
|
nodelist. That nodes are leaving Fidonet has been no big secret,
|
|
but it's been most dramatic recently as the text copy of the
|
|
international nodelist has gone below 2 megabytes where it was three
|
|
just a few years ago.
|
|
|
|
There's real concern here. Some sysops want to revive BBSING by
|
|
posting ads in the local laundromats. Some want to put up an
|
|
HTML-based BBS and go "head-to-head" against the Internet!
|
|
Power-politicians are chastised for creating this net flight.
|
|
Developers are being asked why our technology isn't better. And at
|
|
least one net is supplying local computer-buyers with instructions
|
|
to turn Hyper-Terminal into the Fidonet Explorer.
|
|
|
|
Will all this concern turn the situation around? Will the BBS once
|
|
again flourish and the Fido nodelist expand to consume our hard
|
|
drives? My optimistic guess is "No."
|
|
|
|
Fidonet was never destined to own cyberspace. It briefly (in an
|
|
historical sense, anyway) caught the imagination of the world, and
|
|
it even spurred that imagination on to greater things. But it's
|
|
role in history is more that of amateur radio. Amateur radio
|
|
operators were once king, and their association also spurred the
|
|
imagination of the world. But their role, too, was as harbinger. To
|
|
see how the bbs system operator of the future fares, we can look at
|
|
the amateur radio operator of today... they're still a strong,
|
|
active group - still widely respected. But they no longer own the
|
|
airwaves, having passed it on to their heirs.
|
|
|
|
The BBS sysop never owned cyberspace, but he took his turn at the
|
|
helm when few could see where these machines called computers could
|
|
take us. He still stands tall in cyberspace.
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 4 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
And Fidonet, the community of sysops, will be around for a while.
|
|
Folks always come home to stay for a piece, and there are always
|
|
those who keep a place prepared. Even now, those who have mastered
|
|
the technology of the internet are polishing Fido. Our messages
|
|
move faster and more reliably through new channels. Some are adding
|
|
new wings to the traditional structure. And we're all gathered
|
|
around the fire in the evening quibbling over the seating
|
|
arrangements for tomorrow's dinner.
|
|
|
|
We're busy getting ready for the folks coming home.
|
|
|
|
|
|
-------------- Footnote --------------
|
|
|
|
I'm hoping that this is the first of a few more editorials of an
|
|
upbeat nature. I'd like to explore the theme of preparing the ol'
|
|
place for our guests... and maybe promote some methods for making
|
|
our community a friendly place to stay in the vastness of
|
|
cyberspace. Whether I can follow through depends, of course, on my
|
|
malicious employer who places crass commercial interests above
|
|
community development. And, of course, it depends on Henk Wolsink,
|
|
who might fill the pages of Fidonews with the works of real writers
|
|
and crowd me out before I can say my piece :)
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
| Fidonet: Douglas Myers 1:270/720@fidonet.org
|
|
| Internet: doug@mdtnbbs.com
|
|
| Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own.
|
|
| From Mdtn_BBS @mdtnbbs.com [ In the Heart of Three Mile Island ]
|
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 5 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
ARTICLES
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
|
|
North American Backbone Echo Changes [Jul-Aug]
|
|
by Lisa Gronke, 1:105/9
|
|
lisa@psg.com
|
|
|
|
Summary of backbone & quasi-backbone echo changes during Jul & Aug.
|
|
|
|
Brought to you courtesy of (unix) diff.
|
|
|
|
diff (backbone.na + backbone.no) 05-Jul-98 06-Sep-98 [edited].
|
|
|
|
Added to the backbone
|
|
---------------------
|
|
> ELEBBS_SUPPORT The Official EleBBS Support Conference
|
|
> GEOWORKS Geoworks software conference.
|
|
> SUPER-BITCH Super Bitch Discussion Area
|
|
> WEBUTIL International WEBUTIL Echo
|
|
> WWIV WWIV BBS Software
|
|
|
|
Removed from the backbone or quasi-backbone
|
|
-------------------------------------------
|
|
< BASIC7 (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< BASSGTR (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< CYBER_AUCTION Cyber Auction echo
|
|
< DAIRY_FARM Dairy Farming Conference
|
|
< DEBATE_ON_ABORTION (low traffic since 6/1/98)
|
|
< DTP Desktop Publishing discussion
|
|
< ET_SIGHTINGS ET_SIGHTINGS Discussion Conference
|
|
< FTN_INTERNET (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< GAMES4SALE (low traffic since 6/1/98)
|
|
< GENDATA (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< IRC_CHAT IRC_CHAT Discussion Conference
|
|
< LORD2_IGM (low traffic since 4/1/98)
|
|
< LORD2_SYSOP (low traffic since 4/1/98)
|
|
< MED_MOANS (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< NANFE North America Native Fish Echo.
|
|
< SLEEP_APNEA (low traffic since 6/1/98)
|
|
< STARTREK_CCG (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< STTOS (low traffic since 6/1/98)
|
|
< SYNCHRONET (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< TRI_SYSOP (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< VIRUS_NFO (low traffic since 2/1/98)
|
|
< WC4DOS WildCat! 4 Systems Discussion and Support.
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
o There are 609 echos in backbone.na [06-Sep-98] (down 24)
|
|
o There are 107 echos in backbone.no [06-Sep-98] (up 7)
|
|
o for a total of 716 backbone & quasi-backbone echos (down 17)
|
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 6 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
COLUMNS
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
Dear Editorbeing,
|
|
|
|
I trust that this article will find itself buried beneath
|
|
the fold after the Artspec document in your esteemed organ.
|
|
With any kind of luck, the momentum gained by all six
|
|
readers of the Snooz as they lean on their <RETURN> buttons
|
|
will carry them right past this drivel to the exciting
|
|
Internet gating information. This article is submitted by
|
|
Doc Logger (163/110) who was eagerly awaiting the 29,000
|
|
pounds of bananas which Ruth Argust had shipped to his
|
|
address.
|
|
|
|
Roll da flic, Henk....
|
|
|
|
Dear Reverend Visage,
|
|
|
|
Nice work ace. Submitting your petty cash bills to Swamp
|
|
Swine Magazine and asking for payment in Russian Rubles will
|
|
surely prop up their sagging currency and avert a global
|
|
meltdown of various economies. I guess you noticed that the
|
|
Canadian peso is now worth slightly less than the virtue of
|
|
an Australian woman.
|
|
|
|
What amazes me in the various commentaries that I have read
|
|
is that there is a lack of perception about what causes such
|
|
huge currency fluctuations. What they fail to note is that
|
|
currency trading is conducted by cocaine-crazed twenty year
|
|
olds who wouldn't recognize a Gross National Product if it
|
|
sat on their faces. The little snakes who do the buying and
|
|
selling of foreign currencies are merely gamblers. The fact
|
|
that they gamble with your jobs, your national economies,
|
|
and inflate the costs of blended Scotch to ruinously high
|
|
levels, is but a mere trifle. What really matters is that
|
|
the money trading weasels will be paid six figure salaries
|
|
without having put in a productive day's work in their
|
|
lives. Only lawyers have a greater claim to being economic
|
|
bloodsuckers.
|
|
|
|
Mercifully, having invested all of my spare funds in badger
|
|
sperm futures, I am immune to currency fluctuations. For
|
|
those of global ambition, this seems like a golden
|
|
opportunity because there must be countries who can be
|
|
purchased for a mere $1.95 in hard currency.
|
|
|
|
In last week's Snooz His Immensity, Jerry Schwartz, pointed
|
|
out that Eldridge Cleaver had become a "diversity
|
|
consultant" in his dotage. It could have been worse, Cleaver
|
|
could have become either a sociologist or a statistician. I
|
|
think most of the fervent revolutionaries of the 60s and
|
|
70's have come to the realization that starving has its
|
|
drawbacks. If George Washington were alive today, he'd be
|
|
flogging fat free cookware on infomercials.
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 7 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
Finding the pithy quote I wanted for this week's Chautauqua
|
|
will be problematic because I decided to undo the work of my
|
|
Evil Cleaning lady. My Evil Cleaning lady had arranged all
|
|
of my books by colour and so I have attempted to put them
|
|
back in alphabetical order. In the process, I have
|
|
discovered an immutable law of bookshelves which states: If
|
|
you unload several bookshelves and then attempt to put the
|
|
books back, the shelves will become full long before the
|
|
pile of books has been restored. Somewhere in the pile of
|
|
books the one I want remains hidden. With the daunting
|
|
prospect of finding a real quote, I shall dive into my
|
|
journals and select something random and appropriate.
|
|
|
|
"Your lamp isn't dead...it's just sick." Joe's Lamp
|
|
Reconstruction, Miami, January 17, 1975.
|
|
|
|
When I recorded that philosophical gem from a billboard, I
|
|
had a sense that it served as a metaphor for not just ailing
|
|
lamps, but also for America. When I recorded it, I was on my
|
|
way to the sybaritic pleasures of a Caribbean Cruise (pass
|
|
the prune juice, let's party) and was young enough to be
|
|
optimistically naive about the future. To turn this into a
|
|
proper Chautauqua, the metaphor should be expanded to
|
|
encompass the notion that social systems aren't supposed to
|
|
be terminal conditions, but rather systems capable of being
|
|
"fixed." I see that same notion of futile optimism expressed
|
|
by those who think that some gee-whiz technology applied to
|
|
Fidonet will miraculously stave off its decline. In truth,
|
|
adding IP connectability will just make for a better looking
|
|
corpse, but won't breath any new vitality into the medium.
|
|
|
|
Here at Cassandra's 'R Us, I believe that the only thing
|
|
that matters is the content of messages. There is more than
|
|
a little irony to be found in the fact that while my
|
|
opinions are about as welcome as a skunk at a wedding, the
|
|
style of my messages seems to make some people assert that
|
|
they remain connected to some echos merely for the
|
|
opportunity of reading my drivel. What most of these people
|
|
don't realize is that most of the entertaining writers in
|
|
Fidonet are long gone...discouraged by the cascades of
|
|
quoted drooling and the generally cretinous approach to
|
|
communication.
|
|
|
|
I must go Visage. This has already gone on too long and I
|
|
know that you'll be pleased that Andrea Santos has returned
|
|
from her tryst with vegetables. As Fidonet's official
|
|
Mistress of Antfarms she has been sorely missed. (Special
|
|
note to Lee Aryton's finch: Cute buns, babe.) I had hoped to
|
|
meet with you last week but your secretary informed me that
|
|
you'd missed your flight for the fourteenth straight week.
|
|
|
|
Regards,
|
|
Doc Logger
|
|
Furlang Island,
|
|
South Pacific
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 8 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
Ex-contributors and ex-staff members may only have until December 31,
|
|
1998
|
|
|
|
FACTNet alert
|
|
August 26, 1998
|
|
|
|
Ex-Scientologists who may be eligible for refunds and/or back-pay from
|
|
Scientology may never have a better opportunity or more leverage to
|
|
retrieve their money than between now and December 31.
|
|
|
|
In December, 1998, Scientology s tax-exempt status will be reviewed by
|
|
the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for the final time, and then if
|
|
the IRS is convinced Scientology has abided by its 1993 IRS agreement
|
|
Scientology s nonprofit status will become permanent. Thus for the
|
|
next few months, it is crucial for Scientology to see that its
|
|
operations appear to be above legal reproach.
|
|
|
|
According to Scientology s application for tax-exempt status, it must
|
|
refund donations it has received if donors so request. If you feel you
|
|
were deceived by Scientology or did not receive what you were
|
|
promised, demand your donations back!
|
|
|
|
And legally, Scientology could be liable to provide back-pay for the
|
|
many who have labored long hours for the church far below minimum
|
|
wage, often only receiving $10 or $24 per week. Receiving $24 for a
|
|
40-hour workweek equals sixty cents an hour; for a not-unheard-of
|
|
100-hour week, twenty-four cents an hour. An individual would be owed
|
|
almost $10,000 for each year worked at $24 per week rather than a
|
|
minimum wage of $5.15 an hour, assuming only a 40-hour workweek; at an
|
|
80-hour week it would be over $20,000. It is illegal to pay workers
|
|
less than minimum wage. Don't let Scientology get away with profiting
|
|
from your slave labor! Demand the back pay you are owed.
|
|
|
|
To request refunds and/or back pay, FACTNet would recommend sending
|
|
a very brief letter to each of the organization(s) money was donated
|
|
to or worked for, stating the amount of money requested, and providing
|
|
a date by which it is expected (e.g., by October 31, 1998). Make sure
|
|
you tell them who to make out the check to and where to send it.
|
|
FACTNet will set up a section on the web site with sample letters
|
|
(see www.factnet.org over the next week or so for details).
|
|
|
|
If Scientology does not immediately recompense you be sure to report
|
|
it to the IRS and/or to federal and state departments of labor. As a
|
|
result, the IRS may not finalize the Scientology s nonprofit IRS
|
|
status, and departments of labor may investigate illegal employment
|
|
practices.
|
|
|
|
FACTNet believes that people who are owed remuneration from
|
|
Scientology deserve to know that the next few months are crucial.
|
|
Please contact anybody and everybody you know who may stand to be
|
|
justly compensated, and let them know this may be their last real
|
|
chance to get their money back.
|
|
|
|
---------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 9 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
This editorial opinion provided by FACTNet, Inc. FACTNet is a
|
|
nonprofit Internet library dedicated to protecting freedom of mind
|
|
from harms caused by destructive cults and mind control. FACTNet's
|
|
web page is located at <http://www.factnet.org> and has received
|
|
over 1,950,000 hits since January 1997. To search numerous Internet
|
|
sites on cults and mind control, visit the FACTNet web site. To
|
|
subscribe to FACTNet's free monthly newsletter, email
|
|
factnet@factnet.org with "Subscribe-FACTNews" in the subject line.
|
|
Appropriate re-distribution and re-posting of this document is
|
|
appreciated.
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 10 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=======================
|
|
NET HUMOR
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Dark Side of the Farce
|
|
Douglas Myers 1:270/720
|
|
|
|
It's late at night, at the end of a weekend in which I tried to
|
|
catch up on all the mail I didn't quite get around to reading during
|
|
the work week. The echos are still running through my mind and
|
|
combining in unlikely ways.
|
|
|
|
The ZEC echo is in an interregnum right now, Bob Kohl having been
|
|
fired and Gary Gilmore, the interim ZEC, in somewhat of a pickle.
|
|
Gary is charged by his job description with conducting an election
|
|
for a new ZEC, but Bob Satti has apparantly charged the RECC with
|
|
the task of determining how the new ZEC should be selected.
|
|
|
|
Meanwhile, Bob Kohl has not been silent. He is currently in a
|
|
shouting war with John Souvestre charging him with lack of moderator
|
|
support in the past. John maintains that he just wanted a little
|
|
bit of decorum - that maybe it was a good idea to talk with the
|
|
local sysop or his uplink or the next uplink or the next uplink
|
|
before asking for a feed cut for an entire net.
|
|
|
|
And in the ever-popular SUPER-BITCH echo, the bitches are trying to
|
|
assign the appropriate Fidonet Stars to the roles of the Seven
|
|
Dwarfs. As my eyes close I recall Bob Satti being nominated for
|
|
Sleepy...
|
|
|
|
... and suddenly I realize the appropriate role for Bob Kohl. What
|
|
famous character was originally a force for Good (as many of his
|
|
former supporters maintain) and a rising star in the Fido Empire
|
|
before he finally succumed to the Dark Side? Why it was Darth
|
|
Vadar!
|
|
|
|
Eyes still closed and slumber falling upon me, it doesn't occur to
|
|
me that Darth never made the cast of Snow White.
|
|
|
|
And what famous Princess, a member of the Imperial Senate, was
|
|
chased across the galaxy by Darth and forced to retreat with her
|
|
Rebel Alliance to a new region even as the mighty forces of Darth's
|
|
Empire were destroying her home? This would be Princess Ruth
|
|
Argust, of course.
|
|
|
|
One sysop, irate over zone 2 nodelist errors, has already ranted
|
|
about "Satti the Hut." Durn, that man takes a beating...
|
|
|
|
But to my weary mind, another role is more suitable. Which young
|
|
man wishes to leave the farm and reach for the stars? Though
|
|
inexperienced and making a few mistakes along the way, he is
|
|
nonetheless privy to some routed netmail to Obie Wan Kanobie and
|
|
rushes to rescue the Princess. As young Luke Satti embarks on his
|
|
adventure, he finds that within himself are the seeds of the last
|
|
Jedi Knight. Though he must ultimately confront the Dark Side, he
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 11 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
eventually rises to dispose of Darth Vadar.
|
|
|
|
Drifting to sleep, I wonder who is Yoda, who will take Luke by the
|
|
hand and teach him to use The Force. As sleep overtakes, I recall
|
|
that Yoda wasn't one of the Seven Dwarfs either...
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
| Fidonet: Douglas Myers 1:270/720@fidonet.org
|
|
| Internet: doug@mdtnbbs.com
|
|
| Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own.
|
|
| From Mdtn_BBS @mdtnbbs.com [ In the Heart of Three Mile Island ]
|
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 12 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
NOTICES
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
Future History
|
|
|
|
5 Oct 1998
|
|
29th Anniversary of "Monty Python's Flying Circus".
|
|
|
|
10 Sep 1998
|
|
9th Anniversary of Zone 5 operations.
|
|
|
|
14 Sep 1998
|
|
Start of International BBS Week [thru 20 Sep 98].
|
|
|
|
22 Sep 1998
|
|
First anniversary of the FidoNews domain of www.fidonews.org.
|
|
|
|
23 Nov 1998
|
|
35th Anniversary of Doctor Who.
|
|
|
|
1 Dec 1998
|
|
Fifteenth Anniversary of release of Fido version 1 by
|
|
Tom Jennings.
|
|
|
|
16 Feb 1999
|
|
13th Anniversary of the introduction of EchoMail by Jeff Rush.
|
|
|
|
12 May 1999
|
|
12th Anniversary of Fido Operations in Zone 4;
|
|
10th Anniversary of the creation of FidoNet Zone 4.
|
|
|
|
24 Jul 1999
|
|
XIII Pan American Games [through 8 Aug 99].
|
|
|
|
9 Jun 1999
|
|
Tenth Anniversary of the adoption of FidoNet Policy 4.07.
|
|
|
|
10 Sep 1999
|
|
10th anniversary of Zone 5 operations.
|
|
|
|
26 Oct 1999
|
|
Thirty years from release Abbey Road album by the Beatles.
|
|
|
|
31 Dec 1999
|
|
Hogmanay, Scotland. The New Year that can't be missed.
|
|
|
|
1 Jan 2000
|
|
The 20th Century, C.E., is still taking place thru 31 Dec.
|
|
|
|
1 Jun 2000
|
|
EXPO 2000 World Exposition in Hannover (Germany) opens.
|
|
|
|
15 Sep 2000
|
|
Sydney (Australia) Summer Olympiad opens.
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 13 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 Jan 2001
|
|
This is the actual start of the new millennium, C.E.
|
|
|
|
-- If YOU have something which you would like to see in this
|
|
Future History, please send a note to the FidoNews Editor.
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 14 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
FIDONET BY INTERNET
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
This is a list of all FidoNet-related sites reported to the
|
|
FidoNews Editor as of this issue; see the notice at the end.
|
|
|
|
FidoNet:
|
|
|
|
Homepage http://www.fidonet.org
|
|
FidoNews http://www.fidonews.org [HTML]
|
|
http://209.77.228.66/fidonews.html [ASCII]
|
|
WWW sources http://www.scms.rgu.ac.uk/students/cs_yr94/lk/fido.html
|
|
FTSC page http://www.goldware.dk/ftsc
|
|
Echomail [pending]
|
|
WebRing http://ddi.digital.net/~cbaker84/fnetring.html [TFN]
|
|
General http://owls.com/~jerrys/fidonet.html
|
|
http://www.trak-one.co.uk/foti
|
|
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
Zone 1: http://www.z1.fidonet.org
|
|
|
|
Region 10: http://www.psnw.com/~net205/region10.html
|
|
|
|
Region 11: http://oeonline.com/~garyg/region11/
|
|
|
|
Region 18: http://techshop.pdn.net/fido/
|
|
|
|
Region 19: http://www.compconn.net
|
|
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
Zone 2: http://www.z2.fidonet.org
|
|
|
|
ZEC2:
|
|
Zone 2 Elist: http://www.fbone.ch/echolist/
|
|
|
|
Region 20: http://www.fidonet.pp.se (in Swedish)
|
|
|
|
Region 23: http://www.fido.dk (in Danish)
|
|
|
|
Region 24: http://www.swb.de/personal/flop/gatebau.html (German)
|
|
Fido-IP: http://home.nrh.de/~lbehet/fido (English/German)
|
|
|
|
Region 25: http://www.bsnet.co.uk/net2502/net/
|
|
|
|
Region 26: http://www.nemesis.ie
|
|
REC 26: http://www.nrgsys.com/orb
|
|
|
|
Region 27: http://telematique.org/ft/r27.htm
|
|
|
|
Region 29: http://www.rtfm.be/fidonet/ (French)
|
|
|
|
Region 30: http://www.fidonet.ch (Swiss?)
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 15 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
Region 33: http://www.fidoitalia.net (Italian)
|
|
|
|
Region 34: http://www.pobox.com/cnb/r34.htm (Spanish)
|
|
REC34: http://pobox.com/~chr
|
|
|
|
Region 36: http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/7207/
|
|
|
|
Region 38: http://public.st.carnet.hr/~blagi/bbs/adriam.html
|
|
|
|
Region 41: http://www.fidonet.gr (Greek/English)
|
|
|
|
Region 48: http://www.fidonet.org.pl
|
|
|
|
Region 50: http://www.fido7.com/ (Russian)
|
|
Net 5010: http://fido.tu-chel.ac.ru/ (Russian)
|
|
Net 5015: http://www.fido.nnov.ru/ (Russian)
|
|
Net 5030: http://kenga.ru/fido/ (Russian & English)
|
|
Net 5073: http://people.weekend.ru/soa/ (Russian)
|
|
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
Zone 3: http://www.z3.fidonet.org
|
|
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
Zone 4: http://www.altern.org/zone4
|
|
|
|
Region 90: http://visitweb.com/fidonet
|
|
Net 903: http://www.playagrande.com/refugio
|
|
Net 904: http://members.tripod.com/~net904 (Spanish)
|
|
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
Zone 5: http://www.eastcape.co.za/fidonet/index.htm
|
|
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
Zone 6: http://www.z6.fidonet.org
|
|
|
|
Region 65: http://www.cfido.com/fidonet/cfidochina.html (Chinese)
|
|
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
Pages listed above are as submitted to the FidoNews Editor,
|
|
and generally reflect Zone and Regional Web Page sites. If
|
|
no Regional site is submitted, the first Network page from
|
|
that Region is used in its place. Generally, Regional pages
|
|
should list access points to all Networks within the Region.
|
|
|
|
TCP/IP accessible node access information should be submitted
|
|
to the FidoNews Editor for inclusion in their Region or Zone.
|
|
|
|
-----------oOo-------------
|
|
|
|
Fidonet Via Internet Hubs
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 16 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
Node# | Operator | Facilities (*) | Speed | Basic Rate
|
|
-----------+-------------------+----------------+-------+-----------
|
|
1:12/12 | Ken Wilson | FTP | T1 | $24mo.
|
|
1:13/25 | Jim Balcom | FTP | 56k | $20mo.
|
|
1:124/7008 | Ben Hamilton |FTP,VMoT,F2I,UUE| 64k | $10/$20mo.
|
|
1:140/12 | Bob Seaborn | FTP | T1 | $5/$20
|
|
1:270/101 | George Peace | FTP | T1 | $30mo.
|
|
1:271/140 | Tom Barstow | F2I | ??? | $2mo.
|
|
1:275/1 | Joshua Ecklund | UUE,F2I | 28.8 | $10/yr.
|
|
1:280/169 | Brian Greenstreet | FTP | 33.6 | $2mo.
|
|
1:2401/305 | Peter Rocca | FTP,UUE | T1 | unkn
|
|
1:2424/10 | Alec Grynspan | FTP,VMoT | T1 | $1mo.
|
|
1:2424/3121| Earl Clark | UUE | 33.6 | n/c
|
|
1:2604/104 | Jim Mclaughlin | FTP,VMoT,UUE | 33.6 | $1mo.
|
|
1:2624/306 | D. Calafrancesco | VFOS | 33.6 | $15yr.
|
|
1:345/0 | Todd Cochrane | FTP | T1 | n/c
|
|
1:346/250 | Aran Spence | FTP,UUE | T1 | $10mo.
|
|
1:342/1022 | Steve Steffler | UUE,F2I | 33.6 | n/c
|
|
1:3651/9 | Jerry Gause | FTP,VMoT | 33.6 | $3/$6
|
|
1:396/1 | John Souvestre | FTP,VMoT | T1 | $15mo.
|
|
2:2411/413 | Dennis Dittrich | UUE | 64k | n/c
|
|
2:33/505 | Mario Mure | VMoT,UUE | 64k | n/c
|
|
2:335/610 | Gino Lucrezi | UUE | 33.6 | n/c
|
|
2:469/84 | Max Masyutin | VMoT | 256k | n/c
|
|
2:2474/275 | Christian Emig | UUE | 64k | unkn
|
|
2:2490/5170| Lenny Murphy | F2I | ??? | n/c
|
|
5:7104/2 | Henk Wolsink | FTP | 28.8 | n/c
|
|
--
|
|
+ VMoT = Virtual Mailer over Telnet (various)
|
|
+ F2I = Fido2Int (W95)
|
|
+ UUE = uuencode<->email packet transfers
|
|
|
|
compiled by C. Ingersoll, 1:2623/71, (609)814-1978, fbn@dandy.net
|
|
Posted on the 1st of every month in FN_SYSOP, R13SYSOP and Fidonews.
|
|
-
|
|
___
|
|
! Origin: * Fly By Night * (609)814-1978 *(1:2623/71)
|
|
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 17 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
FIDONEWS INFORMATION
|
|
=================================================================
|
|
|
|
|
|
------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION -------
|
|
|
|
Editor: Henk Wolsink
|
|
|
|
Editors Emeritii: Tom Jennings, Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell,
|
|
Vince Perriello, Tim Pozar, Sylvia Maxwell,
|
|
Donald Tees, Christopher Baker, Zorch Frezberg
|
|
|
|
"FidoNews Editor"
|
|
FidoNet 5:5/23
|
|
BBS +27-41-515-913, 2400/9600/V.34/V.90
|
|
|
|
more addresses:
|
|
Henk Wolsink -- 5:7104/2, hwolsink@catpe.alt.za
|
|
|
|
(Postal Service mailing address)
|
|
FidoNews Editor
|
|
P.O. Box 12325
|
|
Port Elizabeth,
|
|
6006
|
|
South Africa
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FidoNews is published weekly by and for the members of the FIDONET
|
|
INTERNATIONAL AMATEUR ELECTRONIC MAIL system. It is a compilation
|
|
of individual articles contributed by their authors or their
|
|
authorized agents. The contribution of articles to this compilation
|
|
does not diminish the rights of the authors. OPINIONS EXPRESSED in
|
|
these articles ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS and not necessarily those of
|
|
FidoNews and/or the Editor.
|
|
|
|
Authors retain copyright on individual works; otherwise FidoNews is
|
|
Copyright 1998 Henk Wolsink. All rights reserved. Duplication
|
|
and/or distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For
|
|
use in other circumstances, please contact the original authors, or
|
|
the Editor.
|
|
|
|
=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
|
|
|
|
OBTAINING COPIES: The most recent issue of FidoNews in electronic
|
|
form may be obtained from the FidoNews Editor via manual download or
|
|
file-request, or from various sites in the FidoNet and Internet.
|
|
PRINTED COPIES may be obtained by sending SASE to the above postal
|
|
address. File-request FIDONEWS for the current Issue. File-request
|
|
FNEWS for the current month in one archive. Or file-request specific
|
|
back Issue filenames in distribution format [FNEWSFnn.ZIP] for a
|
|
particular Issue. Monthly Volumes are available as FNWSmmmy.ZIP
|
|
where mmm = three letter month [JAN - DEC] and y = last digit of the
|
|
current year [8], i.e., FNWSJAN8.ZIP for all the Issues from Jan 98.
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 18 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
Annual volumes are available as FNEWSn.ZIP where n = the Volume number
|
|
1 - 15 for 1984 - 1998, respectively. Annual Volume archives range in
|
|
size from 48K to 1.4M.
|
|
|
|
|
|
INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via:
|
|
|
|
http://www.fidonews.org
|
|
http://www.fidonet.org/fidonews.htm
|
|
ftp://ftp.fidonet.org/pub/fidonet/fidonews/
|
|
ftp://ftp.aminet.org/pub/aminet/comm/fido/
|
|
ftp://ftp.irvbbs.com/fidonews/
|
|
ftp://ftp.nwstar.com/Fidonet/Fidonews
|
|
|
|
And in non-English formats via:
|
|
|
|
http://www.hvc.ee/pats/fidonews (Estonian)
|
|
http://www.fidonet.pp.se/sfnews (Swedish)
|
|
|
|
*=*=*
|
|
|
|
You may obtain an email subscription to FidoNews by sending email to:
|
|
|
|
jbarchuk@worldnet.att.net
|
|
|
|
with a Subject line of: subscribe fnews-edist
|
|
|
|
and no message in the message body. To remove your name from the
|
|
email distribution use a Subject line of: unsubscribe fnews-edist
|
|
with no message to the same address above.
|
|
|
|
*
|
|
|
|
You may retrieve current and previous Issues of FidoNews via FTPMail
|
|
by sending email to:
|
|
|
|
ftpmail@fidonews.org
|
|
|
|
with a Subject line of: help
|
|
|
|
and FTPMail will immediately send a reply containing details and
|
|
instructions. When you actually make a file request, FTPMail will
|
|
respond in three stages. You find a link for this process on
|
|
www.fidonews.org.
|
|
|
|
*=*=*
|
|
|
|
You can read the current FidoNews Issue in HTML format at:
|
|
|
|
http://www.fidonews.org
|
|
|
|
STAR SOURCE for ALL Past Issues via FTP and file-request -
|
|
Available for FReq from 1:396/1 or by anonymous FTP from:
|
|
|
|
ftp://ftp.sstar.com/fidonet/fnews/
|
|
|
|
FIDONEWS 15-36 Page 19 7 Sep 1998
|
|
|
|
|
|
Each yearly archive also contains a listing of the Table-of-Contents
|
|
for that year's issues. The total set is currently about 13 Megs.
|
|
|
|
=*=*=*=
|
|
|
|
The current week's FidoNews and the FidoNews public-key are now also
|
|
available almost immediately after publication on the FidoNews Editor
|
|
homepage on the World Wide Web at:
|
|
|
|
http://209.77.228.66/fidonews.html
|
|
|
|
There are also links there to jim barchuk's HTML FidoNews source and
|
|
to John Souvestre's FTP site for the archives. There is also an
|
|
email link for sending in an article as message text. Drop on over.
|
|
|
|
=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
|
|
|
|
SUBMISSIONS: You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in
|
|
FidoNews. Article submission requirements are contained in the file
|
|
ARTSPEC.DOC, available from the FidoNews Editor, or file-requestable
|
|
from 5:5/23 [5:7104/2] as file "ARTSPEC.DOC". ALL Zone Coordinators
|
|
also have copies of ARTSPEC.DOC. Please read it.
|
|
|
|
"Fido", "FidoNet" and the dog-with-diskette are U.S. registered
|
|
trademarks of Tom Jennings, P.O. Box 410923, San Francisco, CA 94141,
|
|
and are used with permission.
|
|
|
|
"Disagreement is actually necessary,
|
|
or we'd all have to get in fights
|
|
or something to amuse ourselves
|
|
and create the requisite chaos."
|
|
-Tom Jennings
|
|
|
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|